


Snake In The Grass

by SueN



Category: The Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-05-08
Packaged: 2020-02-28 11:19:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18755416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SueN/pseuds/SueN
Summary: Written for a VinList Finish The Story Challenge.Opening paragraph (written by Teri):Vin Tanner lay quietly in the tall, lush grass as a soft breeze blew a strand of hair across his face.  An insect buzzed annoyingly at his ear and somewhere in the distance he heard a name being called, his name.  He knew he should reply, yet something held him back.





	Snake In The Grass

He’d just gotten comfortable, the pain in his hip and arm had eased, and the sun was warm on his face, the breeze tugging at his hair just the way he liked it.  If it weren’t for that damn insect buzzin’ at his ear, things’d be just about perfect.   Well, ‘cept for the pounding in his head but even that had eased some now, though he wasn’t about to risk movin’ it.  He’d tried that a while ago and it definitely wasn’t a good idea.  Nope, figured he’d just lay here in the sun a while longer …

 

_Chris Larabee wasn’t comfortable, and he sure as hell wasn’t happy, as he strode purposefully, as best he could, through the tall, lush grass.   His expression showed a mix of anger and concern, and which of those emotions ultimately won out would depend on the condition of a certain scruffy tracker when they eventually found him …_

“VIN!”  There it was again, still distant but he recognised the voice, wasn’t surprised to hear it … JD was halfway t’wards becomin’ a pretty good tracker, though he’s still a mite excitable … Vin vaguely wondered if he should raise his good arm, try to signal the kid ‘fore he tripped right over him … could maybe swat that damn fly or whatever it was that’d taken such a likin’ to his ear while he was about it but somehow the effort was too much.  Easier just to lay here, wherever here was …

 

_Glaring at JD as he seemed to bounce through the grass, Chris shook his head in exasperation.  His legs were longer than the kid’s, hell, everyone’s legs were longer than the kid’s, so how was JD makin’ such easy work of movin’ through the meadow when everyone else was strugglin’? … “JD,” he hissed, through gritted teeth, “are you sure he’s in here?”_

And, wherever the hell here was, how’d he gotten here … and where was his horse?  Vin frowned as a foggy memory resurfaced … he’d been on his way back to town when a rattler’d spooked Peso … damn mule had thrown him … he remembered hittin’ the ground, but it’d been hard, too damned hard, not soft like the grass he was layin’ on now …

 

_“He’s gotta be here,” JD stated confidently, although he avoided looking directly at the man in black, whose mood now matched his outfit, “the tracks are clear on the trail where Peso dumped him.  Looks like he stayed put for a while,” JD chanced a glance at Chris, then swallowed and continued, not wanting to deliberate on just why Vin might’ve not moved for a while, “then crawled inta the grass, for cover, I guess …”_

“VIN!”  The call was a little closer this time and there was no mistaking Josiah’s deep bellow.  Vin smiled, certain the preacher’d be able to explain how he came to be here … maybe a Good Samaritan’d happened along, just like in one of ‘Siah’s stories, had found him hurtin’ on the trail and moved him into the long grass to make him comfortable … mind, with his luck, it’d more likely be a bounty hunter who happened along.  He sighed and closed his eyes as the thought prompted a painful memory of draggin’ himself off the trail …

 

_“… he stayed put for a while … crawled inta the grass … for cover …” JD’s words echoed in Chris’ head.  If Vin had layed on the trail for a time then he was hurt, likely unconscious, ‘though he’d’ve had to come around and had his wits about him long enough to head for cover … but why’d he crawled … was he hurt so bad he couldn’t walk?  The thought set the acid churning in Chris’ gut in a way that was becomin’ way too familiar …_

“VIN!”  Another call, off to his left aways, startled Vin awake … Nathan … now he was in trouble.  The healer’d likely be mad at him, call him all kinds of a fool for crawlin’ in here an’ holin’ up when he’s hurt … there’d be a whole lotta fussin’ an’ proddin’ an’ he really didn’t think he could take that right now … maybe he’d just hunker down an’ lay low ‘til he’s feelin’ a mite better an’ then sneak back to town … ‘course that’d be a whole lot easier if he had his damn horse …

 

_Chris frowned as the image of Peso trotting into town came clearly, and unbidden, into his mind … Peso alone, without Vin ... hell, just seeing it once had been enough, he really didn’t need the scene replaying in his mind.   He and the others’d had their horses saddled and were on the trail before Tiny had got Peso into his stall … JD’d found it easy enough to backtrack and lead them to where man and horse had parted company but that’s where ‘easy’ had deserted them, where Vin had deserted them and gone to ground in this damn grass …_

“MR TANNER!”  A tired smirk tugged at the corners of Vin’s mouth as he listened to Ezra tramplin’ through the grass … Ez didn’t have much of a likin’ for nature and Vin thought he should call out, tell him he’s fine an’ to go on back to town ‘fore he got his boots dirty an’ his clothes mussed but his voice didn’t seem to want to cooperate, and his head was startin’ to pound again with all the thinkin’, or maybe it was the sun … it was getting’ kinda warm now …

 

_Cursing loudly as he stumbled on the uneven ground, Chris came to a halt, and glared at the expanse of grassland before him as if he could make Tanner appear by sheer will, make him stand up right there and then with that lazy damn grin on his face as he asked what the hell they were all doin’ out here, tramplin’ through the grass in the midday sun.  Shaking his head, Chris took off his hat and wiped a hand across his sweat drenched face.  Damn but it was getting’ hot …_

“VIN!”  He winced at the volume of the yell … had t’be Buck, the big guy did everythin’ louder’n anyone else, leastways accordin’ to Miss Blossom … he sounded close by and Vin was glad for that, bad things had a way of seemin’ better when Bucklin was around an’, truth be told, he was startin’ to feel pretty bad now … maybe layin’ out here in the sun hadn’t been such a good idea …

 

_Trails of flattened and broken grass criss-crossed the meadow as the six men searched for their seventh, and Chris found himself wondering how the hell Vin had managed to crawl in here, hole up somewhere and leave no sign of where he was or how he’d got there.  Damn tracker must be part snake and Larabee had the sudden notion that he might just have slithered right through the meadow and out the other side and be halfway back to town by now …_

 

Vin sighed, and licked his parched lips … he thought the boys would’ve been here by now .. thought they were close … was sure he’d heard Chris cussin’ him … Chris … could use some help here, Cowboy …

 

_Chris stopped abruptly and cocked his head.  Tuning out the sounds of the others calling and moving about the meadow, his eyes narrowed as he heard, no sensed, something … Vin? … turning to his left, he pushed his way through the grass …_

 

Now he'd started thinkin' about how he felt, Vin was wishin' he'd called out to Ez or Buck, even Nathan ... he'd put up with the fussin' an' proddin' if they'd just get him out of the sun.  Takin' a breath, he was thinkin' about trying to move, to get to his feet, or at least to his knees, when ... the sun went out ... damn strange but he was grateful for it.  A piercing whistle threatened to split his head wide open, and looking up, he peered at the black shadow that was blocking the light ...

 

"Hell, Larabee," he rasped, "warn a man won't ya.  Thought ya was one o' 'Siah's damn crows."

 

_Before Chris could decide how to respond, anger and concern still warring for dominance, five men trampled, stumbled and bounced onto the scene ..._

 

"Hey, Vin, how'd'ya get all the way in here?..."

 

"Our lost sheep has been found, thank you, Lord ..."

 

"Dang fool, crawlin' around with who knows what hurts ya got ..."

 

"I trust you are feeling considerably better than you look ..."

 

"Hell, son, ya gonna go foolin' around in the grass, ya should get yourself some female company ..."

 

Smiling, Vin let the noise wash over him as his friends formed a protective circle around him, then flicked his eyes to the man who had yet to speak, and raised an eyebrow.   For a long moment, Chris just stared at the tracker, then relief beat anger and concern into submission and he dropped to his haunches, offering his canteen.  “Look like ya could use a drink.”

 

Blue eyes met green, two heads nodded, and understanding flashed between them, “Thanks, cowboy.”

 

~~~

 


End file.
